Request for Alaskan Cruise Advice

My wife and I are taking my parents on an Alaskan Cruise on the Dawn Princess leaving Vancouver May 24th. We are cruise veterans, but we have never before taken a cold/cool weather cruise.

We are interested in any and all advice concerning what to pack in terms of clothes and advice on excursions. We are also taking the Princess Land tour that includes Fairbanks, Denali, Mt. McKinley and Copper River. Are their any excursions on the ship or in any of these locations that fall into the "must do" category? Any that should be avoided? Any that should be skipped off the ship because of the land portion?

We cruised on the Sun Princess in '98 and loved it. However, I have seen some brief negative comments about Dawn Princess on this site in recent weeks. Anything we should be aware of?

Thanks in advance for what I know will be terrific advice once again.

If if anyone is taking a European Cruise in the coming months, I still have my Millenium 2003 file on my desk. It was one of the best two weeks of our lives. I would be glad to share any and all information from our european cruise last June.

Jack in South Bend

Song of America '93

Monarch '96

Legend '97

Sun Princess '98

Voyager '00

Millennium '03

First of all there is a wealth of info on the Ports of Call board under Alaska. I have been to Alaska twice and the one thing to remember as far as clothing is layer,layer and layer. You can put on a turtleneck or sweatshirt and have a medium weight coat. Also have gloves and hood for your head. As for excursions there are many to choose from. Depending on what you like my recommendations are in Skagway, either the railroad trip and the one we took last year called "Experience the Yukon". My husband and I thought this excursion was the best ever. It is a seven hour trip and we first thought it would be too long but we stopped every so often and our guide explained things along the way. What a great trip. The Alaska board is the bes though for information regarding all of your stops. Try there. If I can be any more help to you please let us know.

Marilyn

We are on our 4th Alaska on Diamond in May also, adding only a tidbit to Mii, it will rain, soaked jeans are not fun to dry on a ship, I would suggest a decent folding poncho maybe a jacket with a big back pocket for hats and gloves, it won't be "COLD" but it will get nippy and wet makes that worse..

Also REALLY really agree about going to the ports of call board.. it is the best way to get good data.

<FONT color=red>Alaska</FONT>

Diamond Princess 05/04

Mercury 06/02

Rhapsody o.t. Seas 05/98

Legend o.t. Seas 09/95

<FONT color=red>Mexican Riviera</FONT>

Diamond Princess 04/04

Sea Princess 01/02

Vision o.t. Seas 04/02

Star Princess 12/02<FONT color=red>

West Coast-Baja Mexico</FONT>

Ecstacy 09/01

Vision o.t. Seas 10/02

<FONT color=red>Eastern Carribean</FONT>

Century 12/97

<FONT color=red>Western Carribean</FONT>

Century 9/96

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by JackN:

My wife and I are taking my parents on an Alaskan Cruise on the Dawn Princess leaving Vancouver May 24th. We are cruise veterans, but we have never before taken a cold/cool weather cruise.

We are interested in any and all advice concerning what to pack in terms of clothes and advice on excursions. We are also taking the Princess Land tour that includes Fairbanks, Denali, Mt. McKinley and Copper River. Are their any excursions on the ship or in any of these locations that fall into the "must do" category? Any that should be avoided? Any that should be skipped off the ship because of the land portion?

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

on land, in Denali, if you can, change your 3 hour Natural History Tour to the longer Tundra tour. It cost us about $35 pp extra. Every bit of wildlife we saw in Denali was after the turn around point for the shorter tour. In addition, we had some terrific views of Denali that we wouldn't have gotten on the shorter tour.

At MtMcKinley, we took a 3 1/2 - 4 hour Takoosha Homestead tour (I might not have spelled it correctly). It was about a half hour jet boat ride on the river to a homestead where we spoke to the homesteader's family (he is also the jet boat driver and gives a running commentary the entire time. This is a small jet boat, maximum of 6 passengers, so the tour is obviously limited to 6 and feels very intimate. It was fascinating to get this little glimpse into what a homesteader's life was like. In addition, we saw our first eagle on this trip and a salmon in the water.

As you've already been told, layers. We wore everything from tank tops and shorts to sweatshirts covered by windbreakers with gloves and hats. And on one occasion, all on the same day.

Fairbanks, if you have any extra time, we really enjoyed the museum at the University of Fairbanks.

Definitely check out the ports of call section. There is some great info there.

I always encourage people to add a day in Fairbanks. You won't see much of the city other wise. Rent a car. As for you land portion- if you are on the Natural History tour- definately consider an upgrade. This 3 hour tour only gets 16 miles into the park vs 53+ on the Tundra Wilderness. If wildlife is a priority- you need to change this. McKinley Lodge is 100 miles south of the park entrance and 40++ miles from the nearest town of Talkeetna. Take a shuttle there and consider one of the great flying options to view McKinley that are available. You may not see it otherwise. If you trip does go to Copper River (not Cooper Landing). I would definately take a tour of the Kennicott mines with a fly in. Not much other touring in this area without a car. There are no "repeats" with your land and inside passage ports. Your experiences will be vastly different. On your cruise portion- look over a shore excursion list and narrow down YOUR interests. There are just too many great tours to recommend. Layers are they key- take a selection of sweatshirts, tshirts, turtlenecks, a lightweight lined jacket- quick drying is the key, 2 pair of walking shoes, knit hat glove, rain gear. I never take jeans but I spend all my time out doors. I like lined and unlined wind pants. For your land portion budget about 50% more than you would at home for meals - this will then give you a good cushion.

Budget Queen,

Your recommendation of Fairbanks caught my eye. We are renting a motorhome after our cruise and my intention is to get to Fairbanks. What are your must sees in that area?

Lori